Daniel Ford has thirty-six days to live. Accused of the horrific murder of his best friend Nathan twelve years before, he has exhausted all appeals and now faces the long walk to the electric chair. All he can do is make peace with his God. Father John Rousseau is the man to whom the last month of Daniel's life has been entrusted. All the two men have left to do is rake over the last ashes of Ford's existence. So he begins to tell his story. Daniel's story takes him from his first meeting with Nathan, aged six, on the shores of a lake in 1952, through first loves, Vietnam, the death of Kennedy and finally their flight from the draft which ends in Nathan's brutal murder. But meanwhile the clock is ticking and the days are running out . . .
Candlemoth
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Amazon Review
Roger John Ellory's Candlemoth makes a decent but not entirely successful stab at being several novels. It is a protest against the death penalty and about inhuman treatment of prisoners that dramatises both issues by showing us Daniel, who has been railroaded to the electric chair over the brutal murder of his best friend. Inevitably though, Daniel is so passive and battered by his situation that the book can show us little except his pain. Offstage, it is a thriller about the process whereby he was framed and might be acquitted, but Ellory de-emphasises this aspect of the plot in favour of Daniel's suffering.
Much of the book is taken up in a memoir of the 60s, when Daniel and his best friend Nathan had a relationship that crossed racial boundaries in a south torn by conflict and when they went on the run to avoid being drafted into an unjust war. The book is vivid in its sense of the time, but again there is a sense of Daniel as someone who never really lives his own life--even in love and friendship he is the person to whom emotions and events happen. --Roz Kaveney --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
Review
CONFIRMED INTERVIEW: Roger was interviewed by PUBLISHING NEWS for the Debut feature which appeared on 23rd May. Candlemoth was a ONE TO WATCH in THE BOOKSELLER star ratings on 11th April. Roger will be interviewed about the book on BBC RADIO WM on 29 July on the Fiona Dye evening programme. A full page interview with Roger was in the SUNDAY MERCURY newspaper in Birmingham on 3rd August. CONFIRMED REVIEWS: THE TIMES PLAY 26 JulyBIRMINGHAM EVENING MAIL 30 AugustNEW BOOK.MAG Summer issue out on 29 July EVENTS: Roger is attending BODIESIN THE BOOKSHOP at Heffers in Cambridge on 9th July. Roger will be spending a day with local rep Jon Small (either 15th or 22nd August), visiting Birmingham bookshops, meeting key buyers and signing stock.
--This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.
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Four times I've been betrayed - twice by women, once by a better friend than any man might wish for, and lastly by a nation. Read the first page
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Four times I've been betrayed - twice by women, once by a better friend than any man might wish for, and lastly by a nation. Read the first page
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews
15 of 16 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
Roger Jon Ellory made his big breakthrough in 2007 with A Quiet Belief in Angels which has gone on to become one of the best-selling books in the nation. There's a lot more to this Brummie lad than just that one novel though, and most people going through his back-catalogue as a response to his blockbuster success are finding that his outstanding writing skills are evident here in his debut, which again spans most of the lifetime of a single man in the south-eastern USA through the 1950s, 1960s and beyond. It is altogether different in its style, however, and in the emotions it engenders in its readers.
Most stories have a beginning, a middle, and an end. This one is a curiosity because in effect the reader knows the end before opening the first page; 36-year-old Daniel Ford is on death row in a South Carolina prison, having been tried and found guilty of the murder of his best friend some twelve years earlier. For most of the tale, then, the key questions are how, where, and above all why did he kill Nathan Verney? A singular oddity for me was that the story is told from a first-person perspective, making me constantly wonder how a dead man could be recounting the events of his life between 1952 - when at 6 years old he met Nathan - and 1982, with just a few hours to go before going to the electric chair. It turns out that although the end appears to be almost a foregone conclusion, the telling of that end is vivid, powerful and consummately makes up for the relatively genteel nature of most that had gone before, prior to Daniel's arrest around Christmas of 1969. Ellory succeeds in making you feel what it must be like to be weeks, days and finally just hours away from death.... Read more ›
Most stories have a beginning, a middle, and an end. This one is a curiosity because in effect the reader knows the end before opening the first page; 36-year-old Daniel Ford is on death row in a South Carolina prison, having been tried and found guilty of the murder of his best friend some twelve years earlier. For most of the tale, then, the key questions are how, where, and above all why did he kill Nathan Verney? A singular oddity for me was that the story is told from a first-person perspective, making me constantly wonder how a dead man could be recounting the events of his life between 1952 - when at 6 years old he met Nathan - and 1982, with just a few hours to go before going to the electric chair. It turns out that although the end appears to be almost a foregone conclusion, the telling of that end is vivid, powerful and consummately makes up for the relatively genteel nature of most that had gone before, prior to Daniel's arrest around Christmas of 1969. Ellory succeeds in making you feel what it must be like to be weeks, days and finally just hours away from death.... Read more ›
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful
By A Reader
Format:Paperback
I bought Candlemoth off the back of reading Quiet Belief In Angels, which was easily my favourite book so far this year. Being his first novel, I wasn't expecting it to be as good as Quiet Belief as most writer's get better with each book but Candlemoth was just as good which only made me appreciate this author even more. This is not an author who is succeeding on experience and years of working with a professional editor but an author who is truly gifted!! Candlemoth was another deep and involving book that got me hooked from the very first page. It captures the atmosphere of 1960's-1970's America perfectly and there is a real sense of uncomfortable racial tension in the air - something that is thick and heavy but isn't fully understood by 2 teenagers. Ellory's storytelling is absolutely superb. It is engrossing ad emotive and i just couldn't put this book down. Again, there was something beautiful and poetic about the writing style that made me want to read certain parts of the book and certain sentences again and again to really appreciate their significance!! Another book that I would anyone of any age or gender to read!!
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback|Amazon Verified Purchase
Having read the superb A QUIET BELIEF IN ANGELS and A QUIET VENDETTA, I went back to the beginning with this one, Ellory's debut novel.
Surely not another great novel?
Sure is.
Not only are his novels great reads and page-turners, they get right into your soul, so much so that the experience remains long after you've read the last page.
You don't read Ellory - you live his story as though you're right there, every step of the way.
Fantastic!
This story is about two lads, one white, one black, great friends throughout the American racial troubles of the sixties, ending up with Daniel Ford on death row for killing his coloured friend Nathan Verney.
Don't even dream of missing this one.
My verdict on the three I've read so far - A QUIET VENDETTA was perfection!
Surely not another great novel?
Sure is.
Not only are his novels great reads and page-turners, they get right into your soul, so much so that the experience remains long after you've read the last page.
You don't read Ellory - you live his story as though you're right there, every step of the way.
Fantastic!
This story is about two lads, one white, one black, great friends throughout the American racial troubles of the sixties, ending up with Daniel Ford on death row for killing his coloured friend Nathan Verney.
Don't even dream of missing this one.
My verdict on the three I've read so far - A QUIET VENDETTA was perfection!
2 of 2 people found the following review helpful
Format:Paperback
This is Roger Jon Ellory first novel.It is a great story.It is the first book in a long long time to make me weep in one chapter and burst my sides laughing in the next chapter. it is basically the story of two boys,one white one black, in America that meet when they are very young and go through life the best of friends. The story starts with one of them in death row,I wont tell you which one,he has been found guilty of killing his friend.The priest comes to see him and so the story begins with the accused telling the priest their life story. Their life story covers such events as the Vietnam War, Watergate,the death of the Kennedy brothers and Martin Luther King as well as the murder of the death row inmates best friend.This book is without doubt one of the best novels I have read in a long time. I promise you that if you read this book you will go through every emotion possible.
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful
By Fj Westworth
Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase
Roger Ellory's books are as individual, as complex as the man himself. And as varied as any man can be. What they have in common is that they are utterly immersive; they pull in the reader to the point at which other worldly distractions fade away as the story demands all available spare attention.
The plot description is here already, so no point in repeating it. What the plot description does not reveal is the sheer power and intensity of the writing, and hence the reading experience. Candlemoth is one of those rare works which you wish would last for ever, but at the same time you need it to end soon, so that you can understand how the players are as they are, and how they end.
There is history everywhere, because this is an American history novel. There are conspiracy theories galore, because this is a story of conspiracy. There are betrayals, and love, because this is a novel of love and betrayal. Most of all there is endless humanity; Ellory has produced characters impossible to ignore, and as alive as only the best fictional folk can be.
Do yourself a favour. Allow a couple of hours when you start reading Candlemoth, so that you can allow yourself to fold into the alien world of 1960s southern USA. This is not a book for dipping into in TV commercial breaks. It's funny, sad, gritty and tiring. Rewarding, too. Loved it, me.
The plot description is here already, so no point in repeating it. What the plot description does not reveal is the sheer power and intensity of the writing, and hence the reading experience. Candlemoth is one of those rare works which you wish would last for ever, but at the same time you need it to end soon, so that you can understand how the players are as they are, and how they end.
There is history everywhere, because this is an American history novel. There are conspiracy theories galore, because this is a story of conspiracy. There are betrayals, and love, because this is a novel of love and betrayal. Most of all there is endless humanity; Ellory has produced characters impossible to ignore, and as alive as only the best fictional folk can be.
Do yourself a favour. Allow a couple of hours when you start reading Candlemoth, so that you can allow yourself to fold into the alien world of 1960s southern USA. This is not a book for dipping into in TV commercial breaks. It's funny, sad, gritty and tiring. Rewarding, too. Loved it, me.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews
5.0 out of 5 stars
best book I have ever read
Absolutely amazing book and i am an avid reader since a child. gets at the heart of human nature and shows up bigotry and prejudice and a never failing friendship
Published 1 month ago by janice
5.0 out of 5 stars
Ellory does it again!
An evocative & nostalgic read of bygone days with the realisation that nothing remains the same. It draws you right in, I was there amongst the prisoners. Great read.
Published 3 months ago by Lindylou
3.0 out of 5 stars
Candle moth
This book was chosen by my book club. I am struggling with it as I am not enjoying the subject matter. The book is well written and happens to be a signed copy. Read more
Published 4 months ago by Cally
2.0 out of 5 stars
Long, cliched, repetitive and really very average
Its a great title and the opening sequences give hope that it may actually go somewhere but without giving too much away it just really drags, the author makes a very slight story... Read more
Published 9 months ago by onetrack
3.0 out of 5 stars
really great idea.... but.....
as soon as i started reading i could visualise the characters and scenes, it captivated you and was an easy read.I enjoyed the history and background to the story. Read more
Published 11 months ago by Amanda
5.0 out of 5 stars
Candlemoth
An astonishing debut by this superb writer, Candlemoth is a beautiful story of friendship against a backdrop of changing America. Read more
Published 17 months ago by Columnist
5.0 out of 5 stars
Candlemoth - a Great Read...Barnesstorm
This book is a MUST read. From the beginning you know part of the story but the narrative then goes on to explain what happened to the main characters and has a gripping ending. Read more
Published 20 months ago by Mr. J. S. Barnes
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great Reflection
Candlemoth is truly a phenomenal book that was gripping from start to end. Apart from it being quite predictable, I can't really fault it. Read more
Published 20 months ago by Stepping Out of the Page
4.0 out of 5 stars
`I have faith in the fact that I am going to die.'
It's 1982 and Daniel Ford is thirty-six years old. Twelve years ago, Daniel was convicted of the murder of his best friend, Nathan Verney. Read more
Published 22 months ago by J. Cameron-Smith
5.0 out of 5 stars
A powerfully emotive read; brilliant
Candlemoth is an incredible book. It is a powerful, emotive tale of youth, belonging, courage, love and fear. It is a dark read, and in parts, uneasy. Read more
Published 23 months ago by Deborah75
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